Even the boldest of prophets wouldn't dare to predict the current situation. From the midnight screening craze to media feedback, audience attention, followed by online discussions, and finally culminating with the involvement of film critics, "Buried" had unexpectedly taken the lead over "Paranormal Activity 2". It was simply... an unbelievable tale!
In 2009, a found footage horror film shot with a camera, "Paranormal Activity", became the year's dark horse, making $170M in North America with a mere investment of fifteen thousand dollars. It stood as the second most profitable film in history in terms of profit-to-cost ratio, only behind "The Blair Witch Project".
A year later, its sequel shone brightly on the scene. With a budget of $2.75M, it was a world-changing shift from the previous installment. The momentum before its release was overwhelming, the marketing campaign was extensive, and it was expected to dominate this year's Halloween season along with "Saw 3D" – at least until the release of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1".
However, it encountered a powerful sniper shot from "Buried", something Paramount Pictures hadn't anticipated. While it's true that "Buried" had only been shown in eleven theaters, and therefore had no box office competitiveness, "Paranormal Activity 2" still held firm as the weekend box office champion. Nevertheless, the film faced resistance over the weekend, which wasn't good news for its future box office performance.
As for Focus Pictures, they were overjoyed, sitting comfortably while reaping unexpected surprises. Not only could they make minor adjustments to their strategies for "Buried," having high hopes for its continued success, but they could also make corresponding changes in their PR strategy for the upcoming awards season, providing them with another option.
From various feedback, it seemed Focus Features spent $4.5M to secure the North American distribution rights for "Buried". This apparently proved to be a much better deal than the Weinstein Company, which spent $6M to acquire "Blue Valentine", the top-priced film at the Toronto Film Festival this year. However, this film didn't seem as "audience-friendly" as it might have appeared.
In terms of authoritative media reviews, "Buried" garnered reviews from twenty-nine media outlets: twenty-one positive, five neutral, and three negative. With an overwhelming advantage, it continued the media trend set in Toronto, proving that the cheers from Toronto and Telluride were not just the festival atmosphere. Both film critics and audiences showed their support for the movie, making the call for additional screenings in Toronto entirely logical. This growing anticipation meant that more and more audiences were eagerly looking forward to this film in preview.
"Buried" achieved a media average score of sixty-nine, compared horizontally, "The Shining" had a media average score of sixty-one, and "The Sixth Sense" had a media average score of sixty-four.
Just from this set of data, it was clear the fervent praise from film critics for "Buried", especially for Renly Hall, the film's sole male lead. He had garnered unanimous praise. Even the media outlets that criticized the overall quality of the film, even the demanding and critical New York film critics, were not stingy in their praise for Renly Hall.
As a newcomer, Renly had carved out a niche for himself in just a few months. His performance in "The Pacific" had earned him an Emmy award, leaving people inevitably wondering if "Buried" would make a mark in this year's awards season.
In the American film rating system, the media average score was just one part of it. It represented the viewpoint of professional media, often comprising professional film critics, even those with a background in film studies. Hence, their taste was often more finicky and aloof.
Beyond the media average score, Rotten Tomatoes, IMDb, and audience scores served as the best complements for assessing film quality.
Rotten Tomatoes represented the viewpoint of the general media, including comprehensive magazines, online media, authoritative bloggers, theater critics, and more. This meant that their taste was more aligned with the general public while still maintaining the professionalism of film critics. While the number of media average score reviews generally hovered around thirty, never exceeding forty-five, Rotten Tomatoes' aggregate media reviews started at a minimum of one hundred and fifty. Large-scale commercial films could even attract reviews from as many as two hundred and fifty media outlets.
IMDb naturally needed no introduction; it was a website that completely reflected audience preferences. However, IMDb's rating system was quite complex. It graded users based on various data such as the number and quality of films watched. Ratings from experienced users held more weight, to some extent, curbing the behavior of numerous internet trolls attempting to manipulate scores. This was also a significant reason for IMDb's authoritative status.
Lastly, theater scores compiled the feedback and reputation from theaters, completely reflecting the tastes of the general public. Generally speaking, the scores for commercial popcorn films would start at "A-". Anything below that score would be unsatisfactory. Thriller and horror films would hover around a "B", and reaching that score was cause for celebration. Ratings for art films would tend to be relatively lower, and films only screened in art theaters might not even have this data recorded.
These four sets of data represented feedback from different groups, offering extensive audiences points of reference.
However, watching a movie was inherently a highly personal matter. A movie that received unanimous applause from others might leave oneself entirely unimpressed. Conversely, a work that others scorned could be deeply enjoyed. This was all normal. Thus, different audiences selected movies they wanted to see based on different criteria; that was the right approach.
Following the achievement of a media average score of sixty-nine, "Buried" boasted a Rotten Tomatoes rating of a whopping eighty-seven percent. The general media exhibited an unprecedented enthusiasm, offering the highest praises for the film. In the out-of-ten rating system, the Rotten Tomatoes score settled at 7.6. For a suspenseful mystery film, this score was simply outstanding!
It was evident that both professional and general film critics, without hesitation, had lavished their praises. From Toronto to Telluride and then to the North American previews, the upward momentum of "Buried" not only didn't show signs of decline but rather continued to rise subtly, causing a wave of positive word-of-mouth.
So, what about the audiences?
The IMDb rating data was still limited and couldn't be entirely trusted, but the fanatic rating of 8.5 already provided a glimpse of the midnight screening audiences' initial reaction. As for theater scores, there were none.
For a film that had only premiered in eleven art theaters, there was no way to calculate theater scores. Hence, this reference data was currently blank. However, people could find the answers they sought from indirect reference data.
"Paranormal Activity 2".
Premiering on the same day, this film, of the same suspenseful mystery genre, similar low-budget production, garnered a wealth of feedback just like "Buried". It undoubtedly served as the best reference for people.
In the over 3,200 theaters that screened "Paranormal Activity 2", the four evaluation metrics were released promptly.
The comprehensive scores from twenty-three media outlets only reached fifty-three points, a great disappointment. Compared to the previous installment's sixty-eight points, it had dropped by a significant two tiers!
The Rotten Tomatoes score was only fifty-eight percent, and the average rating from one hundred and thirty-one major media outlets was only six points. This decline was consistent with the professional film critics, showing a comprehensive decrease in scores.
Surprisingly, IMDb's rating had gathered over fourteen thousand votes from users, clearly surpassing the number who had seen "Buried". However, the score was greatly disappointing, standing at only 5.5 points. Compared to the previous installment's 6.3 points, it had once again experienced a precipitous drop.
As for the theater scores, achieving a "B" grade somewhat salvaged a hint of dignity, reaching the average standard for thriller and horror films. However, it was just passing; it hadn't lost its pants along with its dignity.
Without exaggeration, the quality of "Paranormal Activity 2" had utterly collapsed. Both audiences and film critics were in strong agreement, experiencing great disappointment with this work.
By comparison, "Buried" was absolutely leading in reputation. Nearly every piece of data outperformed easily, even to the extent of being on par with the miracle-creating "Paranormal Activity". This meant that the lowest estimated theater score for "Buried" was at least a "B," which could match or even surpass "Paranormal Activity 2". Whether it would achieve a "B+" or better performance would depend on judgments made after actually entering the theater to watch.
Moreover, the roaring popularity on platforms like Yahoo Community, Instagram, and Facebook had become a sea of rave feedback. Coupled with the comprehensive positive reviews and Rotten Tomatoes scores, it was easy to draw the conclusion: this was a film worth watching.
The so-called Halloween season was a time for audiences who enjoyed horror and thriller films to revel. However, this year, "Paranormal Activity 2" had evidently disappointed many. Before the upcoming release of "Saw 3D", audiences' wounded hearts were in dire need of soothing. Thus, "Buried" entered the public's attention.
At this moment, industry insiders marveled at Focus Features' cunning strategy. They had positioned "Buried" within this timeframe. On the surface, it seemed unfavorable for a film like "Buried", lacking resources, to directly collide with a similar genre title. However, when seen from another perspective, this also provided an alternative option for those who enjoyed films of "Paranormal Activity" type.
Of course, this was only a post-event analysis. "Buried" being able to attract such attention was the result of the right timing, favorable conditions, human effort, and the synergy of these factors. Without any of these elements, the current situation wouldn't have unfolded as it did. The scheduling decision made by Focus Entertainment served as the final catalyst.
In an incredible turn of events, the weekend preview market for "Buried" had achieved an unprecedented prosperity. Some attended due to the Toronto and Telluride effects, some were curious about Renly's real capabilities, some were drawn by the overwhelming praise, while others were spurred by the disappointment from "Paranormal Activity 2"...
But regardless of the reasons, the audience had streamed into the theaters and purchased tickets for "Buried". That was the outcome.